DAC crowdfunding now in progress

Doc B. · 116367

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Offline johnsonad

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Reply #75 on: January 13, 2015, 01:39:20 PM
It's mid January.  How is the progress and estimated ship date looking?

Aaron Johnson


Online Paul Birkeland

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Reply #76 on: January 13, 2015, 02:47:43 PM
We have quite an impressive stock of DAC bits at Bottleheadquarters currently.  The acrylic front panels have been cut and polished, but not machined out just yet.  Shipments of boards have been arriving lately also, so assembly can begin shortly.

I am currently still working on setting up the programming for the DAC boards, which I hope to have wrapped up by next week.  We are also waiting on our Windows Xmos license. 

Beyond that, we are just missing a few odds and ends to be able to begin shipping.

-PB

Paul "PB" Birkeland

Bottlehead Grunt & The Repro Man


Offline johnsonad

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Reply #77 on: January 13, 2015, 03:16:59 PM
Thank you for the update Paul!

Aaron Johnson


Online Paul Birkeland

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Reply #78 on: January 20, 2015, 11:51:07 AM
We got the new programmer in today, and it's up and running. 

-PB

Paul "PB" Birkeland

Bottlehead Grunt & The Repro Man


Online Paul Birkeland

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Reply #79 on: January 22, 2015, 07:49:48 AM
We were able to obtain the last tidbits of paperwork yesterday to acquire the Xmos driver.  Once processed, John will be able to tidy up the last of the Xmos programming, and we can begin flashing the programming onto the DACs.

-PB

Paul "PB" Birkeland

Bottlehead Grunt & The Repro Man


Offline Doc B.

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Reply #80 on: January 22, 2015, 09:33:49 AM
I got back from a very busy weekend in San Francisco, where the main thrust was our yearly meeting to discuss Tape Project business. Luckily part of that business was done at Paul Stubblebine's mastering lab, and since he has a couple of Pacific Microsonics Model 2 a/d d/a converters there it seemed like a great opportunity to compare the Bottlehead DAC with that gold standard for DACs.

Model 2s were discontinued when the very rare transistors used in them went out of production. They are highly sought after in the industry for their amazing resolution and tube-like musicality, and these days one typically fetches around $16-$17K. So the BDAC had it's work cut out for it.

The situation was not optimal because the BDAC only got an hour or so to warm up and stabilize before we started the A/B. It seems to open up quite a bit more if left on overnight. Even so it did not embarass itself in the presence of the 10X more expensive Model 2. I gave a nod to the Model 2 for a little higher resolution and a little more relaxed sound. I thought the BDAC did maybe a little better job on the bottom end definition - particularly after we figured out the Bag End subs were not running with the Meyer Sound HD-1 monitors and switched them in. FWIW Paul had to push a lot fewer buttons (none) to set the sample rate on the BDAC.

At some point I realized that I had set the power switch on our protoype battery supply to run both the wall wart and the battery together. When I switched the wall wart off so the BDAC was strictly on battery power the gap closed up quite a bit, with the top end of the BDAC getting smoother and less compressed sounding. That matches my experience in my reference system.

I was also relieved to find that the $1550 BDAC easily outdid an Apogee MiniDAC in Paul's home system. Let's hope so!

Of course you have to take my opinions with a grain of salt since I am so heavily invested in the product. Paul, on the other hand, has at least a couple Model 2s that he uses constantly in his work system. He can and will buy what he feels is the best tool for the job at hand. I was happy to learn that he ordered two BDACs for his home systems.

 

Dan "Doc B." Schmalle
President For Life
Bottlehead Corp.


Offline Chris Adams

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Reply #81 on: January 23, 2015, 06:29:37 AM
Don't know how this got past me for so long. Probably because I haven't been paying attention to BH for a while. Just found out about the DAC a few days ago and read all the posts. Ordered one last night. Can't wait.



Offline johnsonad

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Reply #82 on: January 23, 2015, 06:40:51 AM
Thanks for the updated PB and Dan.  What's the timeframe looking like for the battery kit?

Aaron Johnson


Offline Doc B.

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Reply #83 on: January 23, 2015, 07:04:10 AM
I'm sure those involved want us to focus on getting the DAC out first, and that is what we are doing. After we have shipped the first run we will be getting into the battery supply. There are a couple of experiments I need to try before we finalize the design.

Dan "Doc B." Schmalle
President For Life
Bottlehead Corp.


Offline johnsonad

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Reply #84 on: January 23, 2015, 07:45:31 AM
No pressure! You guys have a lot of irons in the Fire already.

Aaron Johnson


Online Paul Birkeland

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Reply #85 on: January 23, 2015, 08:00:03 AM
Thanks for the updated PB and Dan.  What's the timeframe looking like for the battery kit?

I can provide a little more detail on the battery kit.  We know the battery supply sounds better, but we will be spending a little bit of time evaluating different battery chemistries before putting out the battery power supply.  I don't plan to spend a whole ton of time on this until the first couple DACs are out the door.

-PB

Paul "PB" Birkeland

Bottlehead Grunt & The Repro Man


Offline kumasan

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Reply #86 on: January 25, 2015, 02:21:00 AM
I can provide a little more detail on the battery kit.  We know the battery supply sounds better, but we will be spending a little bit of time evaluating different battery chemistries before putting out the battery power supply.  I don't plan to spend a whole ton of time on this until the first couple DACs are out the door.

-PB

Will it be an idea to investigate the ultracapasitor technology as Vinnie Rossi is using it in he's upcoming LIO?

This could be a fine kit to offer for the BDAC.



Online Paul Birkeland

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Reply #87 on: January 25, 2015, 07:19:29 AM
Will it be an idea to investigate the ultracapasitor technology as Vinnie Rossi is using it in he's upcoming LIO?

This could be a fine kit to offer for the BDAC.

Ultracaps are great for quickly absorbing or releasing energy, which is great for a power amplifier (especially a class D amp), and not so great for a piece of equipment that has a constant current draw. 

-PB

Paul "PB" Birkeland

Bottlehead Grunt & The Repro Man


Offline Doc B.

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Reply #88 on: January 27, 2015, 02:30:51 PM
This is production DAC #1 being assembled at our new DAC assembly station. Next step is to test our new programmers on it. We're getting close...
« Last Edit: January 27, 2015, 02:33:44 PM by Doc B. »

Dan "Doc B." Schmalle
President For Life
Bottlehead Corp.


Offline johnsonad

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Reply #89 on: January 27, 2015, 04:45:14 PM
Looking good!  Thank you Dan for the update!

Aaron Johnson